It's All About the Presentation, Baby!
Whether you want to be a Michelin star chef, an aspiring magician, the C.E.O of an international company or the best teacher in the world; presentation is the key to success.Providing learners with the information they need to know in a way that is engaging and interesting has always been at the core of good teaching practice. Today in the classroom teachers can use multimedia presentation software to enhance their teaching and present content in a multi-sensory format which will help to stimulate the learning of their students. The following post outlines a few of the available presentation kits available and the benefits they can have in the classroom.
Microsoft PowerPoint
PowerPoint is often used to create business presentations, but can also be used with great benefit for educational purposes. The presentations are comprised of slides, which may contain text, images, and other media, such as audio clips and movies. Sound effects and animated transitions can also be included to add extra appeal to the presentation. However, overusing sound effects and transitions will probably do more to annoy your audience than draw their attention. (Yes, we have all heard the car screeching noise enough times for one lifetime.)
Most PowerPoint presentations are created from a template, which includes a background color or image, a standard font, and a choice of several slide layouts.This makes it easy to add a uniform and professional look to your presentation
Another benefit when presenting with PowerPoint is the ability to control the pace of the presentation. This can be done using the mouse, keyboard, or a remote control. The flow of the presentation can be further customized by having slides load completely or one bullet at a time. For example, if the presenter has several bullet points on a page, he might have individual points appear when he clicks the mouse. This allows more interactivity with the audience and brings greater focus to each point.
Teachers shouldn't be the only ones using PowerPoint in the classroom. It is such a common, effective and easy to use program that students should also be encouraged to use it regularly. Presenting as as group or an individual is a great way to asses pupil's understanding of a topic and PowerPoint makes this an engaging and interesting method.
Here are some more useful ideas for PowerPoint:
PowerPoint Tutorial
PowerPoint In the Classroom
Prezi
Prezi is a cloud-based presentation software and storytelling tool for presenting ideas on a virtual canvas. The product employs a Zooming User Interface (ZUI), which allows users to zoom in and out of their presentation media, and allows users to display and navigate through information.
One advantage Prezi has over PowerPoint is collaboration. Prezi Collaborate is an online collaboration feature that allows up to ten people (co-located or geographically separated) to co-edit and show their presentations in real time. Users participate in a prezi simultaneously, and each is visually represented in the presentation window by a small avatar. Although Prez Meetings can be done simultaneously that is not the only option. Participants can be invited to edit the Prezi presentation at a later time if they wish. A link will be sent and the participant has up to ten days to edit the presentation. It can be used by teachers and students to collaborate on presentations with multiple users having access and the ability to edit the same presentation.
Clicker
Clicker is another presentation program and it is particularly effective with younger children and those who struggle with literacy. One interesting feature is that Clicker will also read aloud the words you type. This can help both vocabulary and word recognition. Watch the following video to find out more.
Style Shouldn't Replace Substance
With all of these exciting presentations tools available it could be easy for teachers to become distracted from the purpose of their teaching. Therefore it is important to remember that the presentation is a support to the teaching and not the other way around!
Here are some tips to keep in mind when considering presentations.
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